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It feels like just yesterday when I was writing my first blog post here. And now I'm in my eighth month of pregnancy! But at the same time, it really does feel like I've been pregnant all year ... so time is both going slowly and flying by!

We've had a good September. The fair was the highlight, of course. We went three times! Once to see The Bangles, once to see all the exhibits and some motorcycle racing, and once to see Joan Jett. The total tally of foods eaten is this:

Corn dogs (2), pink lemonade, hot link, deep-fried s'more, soft serve vanilla ice cream cone, corn on the cob, onion rings, cinnamon roll with icing and nuts, pulled pork barbecue sandwich, cole slaw, funnel cake with strawberries and whipped cream, one sip of beer.

And guess what? I only gained four pounds in September! That's a pound a week, and that is right on track. I guess I have a built-in calorie burner!

Unfortunately, I experienced about a week of morning sickness again. It started with me puking in the middle of getting a facial last Saturday. (How embarrassing!) Then the next day, James had to pull over so I could puke on the side of the freeway on our way out of town to visit his family. A couple of days of Zofran put me back on track, though, and I'm feeling a lot better now.

At our OB appointment last week, the doctor heard the heartbeat below my belly button, which means the baby is head-down (the correct position for birth). We have our third childbirth class tonight, where we get to tour the birth center and see the rooms and accomodations. I also just got a prenatal yoga video, which is helping me to stretch my ligaments and strengthen my muscles for the birth.

All the invitations for the baby shower are in the mail. We finally finished registering at Babies R Us. We bought a family vehicle last night (2005 GMC Envoy) — with financing, despite the single-day worst drop in the stock market ever.

Everything seems to be coming together! I don't feel overwhelmed anymore, just excited and anxious to meet our baby boy. James is going to be a wonderful birth partner, I just know it. He is already practicing pain management with me. We held ice cubes in our hands the other night to practice breathing and meditation to handle the pain. I know contractions will be far worse than a little old ice cube, but at least we are preparing!

Just seven weeks to go ... (or five if he's early or nine if he's late ...)